The kitchen
The kitchen is the beating heart of most homes. This is where we get together for meals and conversation, and often there’s a windowsill or a shelf full of herbs. For my part, I like to have the herbs that I use most in cooking, such as parsley, basil, coriander, thyme and oregano, close to hand. You can buy small worktop propagators with built-in plant grow lights that provide ideal growing conditions through the dark winter months. You can also use plant grow lights for your own greens, such as lettuce, sprouts and radishes, year-round.
Citrus bushes and trees belong in the kitchen. Calamondin (Citrus x microcarpa) and lemon (Citrus limon) can easily find their way into your food, and when I’m making myself a gin and tonic at the weekend, there’s always a slice in it.
The small calamondins from the tree are really sour, but the fun of having grown them myself is definitely sweet!
I also have a coffee plant (Coffea arabica) on my worktop. It has decorative, shiny leaves, and perhaps in a few years it will grow into a small tree – and maybe even produce enough coffee beans to give me a low-food miles espresso … I can dream, can’t I?
A separate plant shelf is a practical and attractive addition to any kitchen. Fill it with a selection of herbs and decorative plants, and a handful of good cookery books and a few knick-knacks that you’re fond of.
